Buying watches from Chrono24

[CMTBRIAN]

Hi mates,

I am looking around for a patrizzi 16520 and found some good ones on Chrono24 from some global sellers.

Having said that, I had never had prior experience of buying watches from this platform.

Can anyone share with me about your experiences? Good or bad, whatever...

And anything I should pay attention when dealing with the potential sellers?

Any comments would be much appreciated.

[Pongster]

Youre in Hk. Lots of choices there.

But Chrono24 is good source as well. Bought around 50 watches from them the past three years or so.

[Pongster]

Got my AP15400 at the Elements boutique

[Sim1]

The great thing about that platform is that in most cases it allows you to pay via their escrow service. You make the payment in full to Chrono24, when they receive it they alert the seller that will send you the watch. Once you receive the watch you have (I believe) 14 days to make sure it's good and legit, and THEN, after your confirmation, Chrono24 will release the payment to the seller. I never bought anything through them as I only buy stuff from official dealers, but I think it's a very good service that protects you from potential frauds.

[Chris B]

Originally Posted by Sim1

The great thing about that platform is that in most cases it allows you to pay via their escrow service. You make the payment in full to Chrono24, when they receive it they alert the seller that will send you the watch. Once you receive the watch you have (I believe) 14 days to make sure it's good and legit, and THEN, after your confirmation, Chrono24 will release the payment to the seller. I never bought anything through them as I only buy stuff from official dealers, but I think it's a very good service that protects you from potential frauds.

I've bought a couple of watches using Chrono24, both transactions were as smooth as silk

[Harry-57]

I have used C24 to scope two watches I wanted to buy and then contacted the dealers direct. It's all about buying the seller. No amount of protection will make a safe seller any safer of a con artist any less dishonest.

Once you have identified sellers you can research the hell out of them. I think C24 is an excellent resource for getting the ball rolling and for doing some initial weeding, the easiest being looking at the photos. If a seller is using stock photos which are not of the actual watch, or fuzzy images, I move past and keep looking.

They don't actually price or sell or buy watches. They are just an intermediary for anyone who wants to use them for good exposure to potential buyers. What buyers ask on C24 is more than I have ended up paying them - in my limited experience.

[fskywalker]

Have not purchased watches but did purchased a Rolex dial
from an UK brick and mortar store, everything went smoothly


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[CMTBRIAN]

Originally Posted by Harry-57

I have used C24 to scope two watches I wanted to buy and then contacted the dealers direct. It's all about buying the seller. No amount of protection will make a safe seller any safer of a con artist any less dishonest.

Once you have identified sellers you can research the hell out of them. I think C24 is an excellent resource for getting the ball rolling and for doing some initial weeding, the easiest being looking at the photos. If a seller is using stock photos which are not of the actual watch, or fuzzy images, I move past and keep looking.

They don't actually price or sell or buy watches. They are just an intermediary for anyone who wants to use them for good exposure to potential buyers. What buyers ask on C24 is more than I have ended up paying them - in my limited experience.

If a seller with overall 4.8 out of 5 among its > 300 ratings (there are some outliners on the ratings dragging down its overall ratings actually), are the 4.8 stars and number of ratings (> 300) sufficient to jump to the conclusion that this seller can be trusted? or that would remain to cast some doubts?

[CMTBRIAN]

Thanks all for your quick comments which are very useful indeed.

If a seller has an overall 4.8 out of 5 among its > 300 ratings (some outliners that dragged down its overall ratings actually), do you consider the stars and number of ratings are sufficient to jump to the conclusion that he can be trusted?

His photos seem "actual" as far as the post appears that they are (not stock nor fuzzy photos).

[HHIslander]

Originally Posted by Harry-57

I have used C24 to scope two watches I wanted to buy and then contacted the dealers direct. It's all about buying the seller. No amount of protection will make a safe seller any safer of a con artist any less dishonest.

Once you have identified sellers you can research the hell out of them. I think C24 is an excellent resource for getting the ball rolling and for doing some initial weeding, the easiest being looking at the photos. If a seller is using stock photos which are not of the actual watch, or fuzzy images, I move past and keep looking.

They don't actually price or sell or buy watches. They are just an intermediary for anyone who wants to use them for good exposure to potential buyers. What buyers ask on C24 is more than I have ended up paying them - in my limited experience.

+1

I’ve never bought via chrono, but I have used them to find pieces and then buy directly from the seller. Chrono has high fees and you may be able to get it cheaper that way, I did.

[rmlovett1]

Originally Posted by Harry-57

I have used C24 to scope two watches I wanted to buy and then contacted the dealers direct. It's all about buying the seller. No amount of protection will make a safe seller any safer of a con artist any less dishonest.

Once you have identified sellers you can research the hell out of them. I think C24 is an excellent resource for getting the ball rolling and for doing some initial weeding, the easiest being looking at the photos. If a seller is using stock photos which are not of the actual watch, or fuzzy images, I move past and keep looking.

They don't actually price or sell or buy watches. They are just an intermediary for anyone who wants to use them for good exposure to potential buyers. What buyers ask on C24 is more than I have ended up paying them - in my limited experience.

⬆️⬆️⬆️ Same for me. I use it as a starting point, then contact a dealer directly.

[CMTBRIAN]

Originally Posted by HHIslander

+1

I’ve never bought via chrono, but I have used them to find pieces and then buy directly from the seller. Chrono has high fees and you may be able to get it cheaper that way, I did.

Wouldn't that makes it so risky if you deal with a seller directly who is basically a stranger without a platform to serve as an intermediary?

True that it may be less expensive to buy a watch by doing so but how to reduce the counterparty risk of the seller, while a watch like Rolex, AP, PP etc in general would be at certain great amount?

At the end of the day, how we can identify a genuine seller selling authentic goods?

[TK-710]

You should reach out to adamod1. He seems very knowledgeable about Chrono24.

https://www.rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=778561

[CMTBRIAN]

Seriously? Per the link, I don't think his comment on Chrono24 is really taken by others as a good reference...

Anyway, thanks for your inputs.

[1William]

I use Chrono24 as a pricing and location reference. I have contacted sellers from Chrono24 before and purchased watches directly from the dealers. My Credit Card has buyer protection and I always buy the seller so the protections from Chrono24 offer me little that I do not have from my CC. You are in Hong Kong so you should easily find some options. Go see them, negotiate, pay and start your ownership experience. Good luck and let us know what you find.

[HHIslander]

Originally Posted by CMTBRIAN

Wouldn't that makes it so risky if you deal with a seller directly who is basically a stranger without a platform to serve as an intermediary?

True that it may be less expensive to buy a watch by doing so but how to reduce the counterparty risk of the seller, while a watch like Rolex, AP, PP etc in general would be at certain great amount?

At the end of the day, how we can identify a genuine seller selling authentic goods?

Most of the sellers there are businesses, not strangers or individuals. They have external reviews and legit websites that can be verified. I wouldn’t buy from a private individual on chrono.

I wouldn’t trust chrono for much of anything. From what I know, they aren’t doing all that well. I’d trust an established seller with a good rep before I would trust their escrow process.

[Calatrava r]

Its fine but buy the seller is always the best advice.

[CMTBRIAN]

Thanks all for your sharing and the tips.

Will do some more homework. Cheers.

[joli160]

Go to the well known trusted sellers in the boutique section on TRF.

Forget the rest and avoid getting burned.

[Laszlo]

Chrono24 is fine. Reach out to Vadim, he owns WRIST AFICIONADO. He’ll find you anything and he’s an absolutely great guy.

[Watchflair]

I’ve purchased from there - buy the seller first - know who you are buying from - flawless transactions with following that logic.


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[rolehex]

Purchased a couple on there and I would only recommend it through the escrow service.

[Dan417]

Since the implementation of fees/sales tax I’ve stopped purchasing from Chrono24. Shamefully, I admit, I have made purchases from members of Chrono24 off the website with positive results.


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[Pongster]

Originally Posted by CMTBRIAN

Thanks all for your quick comments which are very useful indeed.

If a seller has an overall 4.8 out of 5 among its > 300 ratings (some outliners that dragged down its overall ratings actually), do you consider the stars and number of ratings are sufficient to jump to the conclusion that he can be trusted?

His photos seem "actual" as far as the post appears that they are (not stock nor fuzzy photos).

Which particular seller are you looking at?

[ndrs63]

I once bought a Panerai pam 111 from a reputable seller. Was naive at the time, as I fell for the “no box, papers” trap. Turned out to be fake. Before the watch arrived, I made sure I knew how to inspect it, and consulted WUS members who are experts. Sure enough, it was a fake. Too bad, as the price was great (too good).
You are in luck with Chrono24 as you have 30 days to inspect the watch and return it if any problems. But you have to be very well informed, as after 30 days you’re on your own.
And don’t always believe the “buy the seller” saying.


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[Laszlo]

You can still find dealers in some states that won’t charge you sales tax, such as Georgia. You just need to ask. Nevada is the same. I buy my photo equipment from Leica Vegas, no sales tax.

[Lagetickers]

Yes you can make a purchase, but try to contact a well known seller the result will be a positive one, hopefully.....all the best.